


Americano

by captainflintsjacket



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Christmas fic, a second coffee shop au you say
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-05
Updated: 2019-09-05
Packaged: 2020-10-10 06:51:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20523752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/captainflintsjacket/pseuds/captainflintsjacket
Summary: Hilariously I wrote down "based on prompt 12" but then did not include a link to the prompt it was so...I have no idea.Something in the general vicinity of: You work in a coffee shop and it's Christmas Eve!





	Americano

“Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the shop, not a coffee was sold - not even a drop,” you whispered to yourself as you wiped the counter for what must have been the tenth time in an hour. You dropped the rag with a sigh, wondering why you agreed to work Christmas Eve. Then, you thought of the empty apartment waiting for you and figured it was better to be at work. At least the shop had heat.

The bell rang as the front door opened, and you snapped your head up, a genuine smile spreading across your face at the thought of finally talking to another human being instead of the steamer. “Welcome, stranger. What can I get started for you?”

The man who approached the counter looked almost as tired as you felt. Hair stuck at odd angles, bags under his eyes, jaw clenched so tight it made your teeth hurt. “An Americano, darlin’.”

“Coming right up, darlin,” you mimicked. You swore the corner’s of the man’s mouth twitched up.The beauty of it was enough to embolden you: “Can I get your name?”

The man raised an eyebrow. “I’m the only customer in here.”

You shrugged. “Could get busy any second. Christmas is all about miracles, you know.”

The man pressed his lips tight together as he dropped his gaze, shuffling his feet. The air felt suddenly heavy, and you knew you’d touched a nerve. “Leonard,” he said softly. He focused on peeling off the bent edge of a sticker on the counter.

“Well, Leonard,” you said, “Go ahead and take a seat. I’ll bring your Americano to you, if I can manage to fight off this crowd.” You waved an arm across the empty cafe. Leonard snorted, lips twitching up again as he turned to park himself at a table nearby. You considered it a personal victory.

The thrill of finally having a customer sent you into overdrive and if your manager had been there she probably would’ve commended you for making the drink in record time. Unfortunately, she wasn’t, and you were back to wiping counters and desperately trying not to ogle Leonard. He sat close enough that you could make out the muscles in his arms when he crossed them. His blue windbreaker crinkled like a candy wrapper, and you couldn’t help but stare. Maybe this was your Christmas miracle.

_No,_ you told yourself. _Absolutely not. Not with a customer. _You turned away from Leonard and made your way to the bakery case. Maybe a real snack would distract you from the one sitting ten feet away.

You picked through the cakes and cookies, pulling the treats that were due to be tossed and marking them out. You could still see Leonard through the glass of the case. His eyes were glazed over, his lips pulled tight together again. He looked like he was somewhere far away. Somewhere painful. Somewhere you were all too familiar with.

Laden with an armful of marked out goodies, you made your way over to Leonard’s table. You told yourself it was for the best. They’d just go in the trash otherwise. At least this way they wouldn’t go to waste.

“Look,” you started, dropping the snacks onto the table as you sat across from Leonard, “I know we don’t know each other, but I’m bored out of my mind, so I brought some snacks and thought maybe we could talk.”

Leonard raised an eyebrow in question as he surveyed the hoard in front of him. “I am a doctor, so I don’t think I can condone this.”

You paused, chocolate croissant already halfway in your mouth, then shrugged and scarfed it down. “Your loss.” You reached forward to pull the goodies back toward yourself but Leonard put a hand on your arm to stop you. He picked up a chocolate chip cookie for himself and started munching away.

You spoke between bites of food, sharing jokes and sob stories. You were a painter, working at the café to pay the bills. Leonard was a doctor - a _ hot_ doctor - with a heart of gold. He was supposed to see his daughter for Christmas, but he’d gotten delayed in Yemen where he was working with Doctors Without Borders.

“Jesus,” you breathed. “This is starting to feel like a Hallmark movie. I mean, could you be more perfect?”

“Don’t think my ex-wife would agree with you.”

“Please, anybody that would let you go clearly doesn’t have taste.”

“Do you?”

“Of course I have taste,” you laughed, trying to ignore the butterflies kicking up in your stomach, “look at this feast I prepared us.” You waved your hand towards the now empty snack wrappers and crumbs that littered the table.

Leonard laughed. It echoed around the empty room like a song. “Maybe we can feast on something a little healthier next time.”

“Next time?” You tried to bite back the smile, but failed miserably.

“Yeah. I thought we could go for a cup of-”

“Coffee? Really? Do you…do you know where we are right now?”

Leonard laughed again, a deep belly laugh that warmed you up better than any cup of coffee could. “Fair point. How ‘bout a drink then? I know a good bar downtown. Plus, the owner owes me a favor so I can probably get us free drinks.”

“Mmmm, you just said the magic words.” The bell chimed again as a young couple walked in. “Guess that’s my cue,” you said, pulling a sharpie out of your pocket. You grabbed Leonard’s hand and scribbled your number on it. “Text me sometime.”

You smiled at the couple, now at the counter, and took their orders. Your phone buzzed as you fixed their drinks. There was a new message from an unknown number. If this is a Hallmark movie, does that mean you’re my Christmas miracle? Your eyes shot up to Leonard, but his table was empty, the trash and crumbs already cleared away. Smiling, you tucked the phone back into your pocket and walked the drinks over to the couple.

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on Tumblr @trade-baby-blues


End file.
